UPDATE: Police Use ‘Less Than Lethal Force’ To Arrest Suspect

After five-hour stand-off on a Westwood rooftop, the suspect is in custody. By Sara Fay

[Update 10:15 p.m.]: The suspect is identified as David Arthur Hoskins, 33, of Los Angeles. He was arrested on a charge of grand theft auto, LAPD Officer Karen Rayner told City News Service. Hoskins has several criminal convictions, including two prior convictions for grand theft auto in 2002. Follow Westwood-Century City Patch for more updates on this story.

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The man who was in a five-hour stand-off with police on a Westwood rooftop after a chase in a stolen car earlier this morning is now in custody, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Officers used “less than lethal force” around 1:15 p.m. to get the man down from the roof after exhausting other options, said LAPD Media Relations Officer Cleon Joseph. Police fired bean bag projectiles at the man and he immediately moved with his hands raised toward a ramp propped up against the roof, according to City News Service. He then dropped to the roof and officers arrested him.
•Earlier: Driver of Stolen Car in Stand-Off With Police on Roof, 1 Arrested

Around 8 a.m. this morning, officers began pursuing the man, who was driving a confirmed stolen vehicle through the Westwood neighborhood north of Wilshire Boulevard. The chase lasted about five minutes before the suspect bailed out of the car and climbed onto the roof of a home in the 800 block of Malcolm Avenue. A female passenger was arrested, according to LAPD.

A SWAT team was on the scene along with crisis negotiators and several LAPD Rescue Team vans throughout the morning. Ambulances are currently on the scene assessing the suspect’s condition. The man is “doing fine,” Joseph said.

Residents in the surrounding area were evacuated earlier this morning, Joseph said. Several neighbors were watching the scene unfold throughout the morning. Some brought water and snacks to those evacuated from their homes.

Sean Reilly drove past the scene on his lunch break out of sheer curiosity.

“I’m a computer guy, I just jumped out for lunch and seen the helicopters hovering all morning and go look on the news and there’s a crackpot up on top of a roof,” Reilly said. “(He) stole a car and wanted to get away. I guess he’s away he’s away…he’s by himself, so I don’t know what all the hoopla is about. Just send the dog up, get him off the roof.”

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